We invest in renewable energy and are committed to the responsible management of waste and end-of-life materials.
Photovoltaic installations and use of renewable energy
As part of an energy transition journey, we continue to invest in the use of solar energy through the gradual expansion of our company photovoltaic park.
With this in mind, we have equipped our plants in Villasanta, Arcore, Felino, Sala Baganza and Borgo del Sole with photovoltaic systems with the aim of improving their efficiency by using energy obtained from renewable sources. An investment of value for our business and the environment that in 2024 allowed us to increase our self-production capacity of electricity by 13%, reaching the production of 80% of the company's electricity needs.
Waste management
In 2024, we strengthened our commitment to increasingly sustainable management of waste and obsolete materials, with a specific focus on managing sludge from wastewater treatment processes at our plants.
As sludge is classified as special waste due to its organic and inorganic composition, it requires specific treatment aimed at recovery or safe disposal. In line with this approach, we adopt different practices at our plants:
Biogas: sludge is used to produce biogas at the Biassono, Faenza and Arcore plants, contributing to the energy sustainability of the facilities;
Disposal: at the Villasanta, Sala Baganza and Felino sites, sludge is managed according to strict procedures to ensure its correct disposal, in compliance with current environmental regulations.
The waste recovered in 2024 represents 90% of the total waste produced.
Reduction in water consumption
Rovagnati is committed to reducing its water consumption through dedicated technologies and projects.
The High Temperature Pasteurizer System (HTST), created in 2007 in collaboration with the Verinox Acciai company of Trento, has allowed for a roughly 50-fold reduction in water consumption (from 4,500 to 80-100 cubic meters/week), a 24.2% decrease in the temperature difference between calories and refrigeration supplied, and a 6-fold decrease in bacterial load. The HTST is still a groundbreaking piece of food-pasteurization systems technology. Compared with traditional autoclaves, it improves the hygienic and sanitary profile of Biassono's plant.
We also implemented actions to improve the quality and availability of water resources, adopting innovative technologies for water treatment. Actions that included the installation in the Arcore and Biassono plants of activated sludge biological treatment purification plants, with a membrane ultrafiltration system in the Biassono plant.
Logistics
We have strengthened our partnerships with transport providers capable of accurately monitoring and tracking the CO₂ emissions they generate. This approach enables us to monitor our environmental impact and encourages the adoption of more sustainable transport solutions. Overall, in 2024, total CO₂ emissions generated by Rovagnati’s logistics operations amounted to 2,746,420.27 kg. With the introduction in 2024 of the Sedex platform, dedicated to the collection and management of suppliers’ sustainability data, Rovagnati is taking an important step towards greater transparency and traceability across its own logistics supply chain.
Supply chain monitoring
With a view to continuously improving supply chain management, in 2024 we signed a collaboration agreement with Sedex, one of the leading global platforms for managing ethical and responsible performance within the supply chain. The platform is used to monitor, improve and share information on ethical, environmental and social practices within the supply chain. This enables us to identify any areas of risk in the supply chain and to make decisions based on concrete data, taking targeted action.
